Ronin
by Lexifer666
Summary: Aftermath of the final battle between the Foot and Hamato clans. Leo-centric. One shot. Warnings: Major character death. Minor gore. Possible suicide triggers. I do not own the TMNT. Complete.


The tall, drab building that served as the New York headquarters of the Foot clan loomed over Leonardo, blotting out the quarter moon hanging coldly in the starless sky. Only the glass rooftop and large clock face set it apart from the rows of generic dwellings and storefronts that lined the deserted street. He leaned against the rough brick wall, giving himself a moment to rest, struggling to recall what he was doing there.

Leo had locked down his mind, keeping to the singular task of arriving at his destination. The further he had walked the more he'd bled, his intentions becoming undefined. The protective barrier was starting to crack, snippets of memory and pain seeping through. Rage had started him on this path, coupled with the poisoned barb of betrayal. Now only the heat remained, simmering under the surface of his shock.

Revenge. Of course that was his purpose. His entire life had revolved around it, molding him into the blood-soaked monster he was, skulking there in the pitch of night, ready to dole out more suffering. It seemed only fitting that vengeance would be the end his life as well.

**ooo**

_~Master Splinter took all six of them to the industrial district for a late-night training exercise. As they ran their drill a sharp cry ended their usual banter, making them all skid to a stop along the fine gravel of the open rooftop. The shock of seeing Tiger Claw's teeth sunk into Sensei's shoulder was broken by the wave of black-clad mechanical ninja led by Rahzar and Fish Face._

**ooo**

Leonardo was resting his forehead against the cool brick, eyes closed. He wondered how long he had been standing there, the taste of bile in his mouth. He looked over his shoulder. At this hour, somewhere between darkness and first light, this part of the city was quiet. He moved along to the front of the building and tried the door. It was unlocked, daring anyone foolish enough to trespass. Leo walked in as if he belonged there, unsheathing his katana. Inside, the building was dark and silent but Leo knew there would be sentries somewhere in the shadows of this mausoleum. The marble floor was cold beneath his stained, tacky foot wraps and he tried to think of anything else but how much blood he had walked through.

**ooo**

_~Shredder himself materialized out of the shadows to descend on Master Splinter, bent on his final revenge. Leonardo knew it was up to him to break away from his family and take Shredder on himself, otherwise Sensei wouldn't have a chance. He attacked Shredder outright, demanding his attention while Sensei fought Tiger Claw. Splinter had escaped the tiger's teeth, but his arm was limp and a dark stain bloomed steadily down the right side of his robe. _

_Shredder deflected Leonardo's katanas and laughed in his face, then gave the signal for his archers to ready their bows.~_

**ooo**

Leonardo watched a ruby droplet glide lazily down the back of his sword before dropping heavily onto the floor. Dispatching the three sentries stirred up the fog in his head, threatening to reveal the horrors that lurked there. A wave of dizziness gripped him, forcing him to lean over the hilt of his remaining katana. When his vision cleared he continued on, shuffling through the doors of Shredder's throne room and revealing the narrow aisle between symmetrical cisterns of water. The entire floor seemed to ripple with the reflection of the fires contained along the walls on either side, blending liquid and solid into a disconcerting illusion of flux underfoot. He made it halfway to the Foot's seat of power before hearing movement once again and turned wearily, katana raised unsteadily.

"Father?" a feminine voice asked with concern. Karai's silhouette darkened the doorway and she took a sharp breath. "Leo, you can't be here," she said in a hushed voice, stepping into the firelight. "What happened?" Her eyes widened into golden orbs as she took in the sight of him.

She looked genuinely surprised for the person who had betrayed him. Karai approached quickly, stopping short only when he took a ready stance and tensed. "What happened?" Leo repeated, eyes narrowed and blank. "What happened?!" he roared, his voice echoing through the chamber as the purest white fury he had ever known blanched out all reason.

He rushed her, his battered body somehow still obeying him. Karai gasped as she avoided the deadly whine of his stained blade cutting through the air. She flung a small duffel from her shoulder at him, trying to buy a few seconds of misdirection, then dropped and rolled, frantically pulling a knife from her boot. Leonardo snarled and went for her again before his strength left him completely.

**ooo**

_~Shredder was as merciless and unrelenting as the last time they had fought, but he had been younger then; wounded and exhausted. In the months it had taken for him to heal, he had made an oath to himself that someday, he would be the one to end Shredder once and for all. He had never imagined what that might cost him._

_Master Splinter was down and Casey tried to get Tiger Claw's attention to lead him off, darting in and out of range swiftly and taunting him. Leonardo watched as Casey pulled in close once again, unable to warn him that the tiger mutant was ready this time. Tiger Claw spun and shot him point-blank in the chest with his pistol. The pulse blast made Casey buck back abruptly, and a graceful spin kick from the giant cat sent him over the ledge of the roof. Casey had survived being thrown off a building by Tiger Claw once; the second time he wouldn't be so lucky._

_Leonardo almost paid for his distraction with his head, moving just in time to feel the sharp bite of steel slice through his deltoid instead. If he didn't focus on Shredder he would be dead within seconds. Raphael's anguished roar as he charged recklessly at Tiger Claw worked to harden Leo's heart to ice, making him just as merciless as the Shredder.~_

**ooo**

"Where were you?" Leonardo yelled. "Too much of a coward to watch your own treachery?" Karai was avoiding him easily, holding the knife defensively along her forearm. His attacks were forceful but increasingly sluggish and he dug deep for the last of his strength.

"I just stepped off a plane from Tokyo." She looked offended by his accusation. "I've been gone all week, Leo."

He ceased his attack but kept the katana raised between them. She was in street clothes, black tights and a spiked leather jacket over a powder blue top. Leonardo glanced over to her carry on bag, barely comprehending her words. The cut across the front of his thigh was weeping again, the rivulets running down his leg and causing his foot slide on the polished floor as he took a step. He swayed and willed himself to stay standing.

"We were ambushed during training," he insisted, clinging to his anger like the lifeline it was. "How could they have known where we would be if you didn't tell them?"

"Rahzar and Tiger Claw must have sniffed you out." She looked ill suddenly. "He knows. He sent me away so I couldn't lead them off your trail this time." Karai's eyes darted around the large empty room as if expecting an attack at any second. "You need to get out of here."

"Shredder is not coming back," Leonardo assured her darkly.

**ooo**

_~Leonardo managed to kick under Shredder's chin, dislodging his kabuto. He felt one of his katanas snap as Shredder punched through his block, sidestepping the bladed fist before it could skewer him. By now they were both wounded and breathing hard, the conclusion to their long-standing feud imminent. Leonardo took a chance, plunging his sword in a backwards sweep up and into Shredder's unprotected throat. The move left Leo's front unguarded, and Shredder's follow through strike sent razors across his platron. Even then, seconds from death, Shredder's grotesque smile was victorious. Leonardo twisted the katana viciously, leaving him to bleed out alone. _

_With a sinking feeling in his gut he turned to the carnage that had been wreaked around him while Shredder had tied his hands. He went first to Master Splinter, his pulse thundering in his temples. Leo took hold of his father's cold hand and knew straight away that he was gone. A few feet away Raphael and Tiger Claw were locked together in a sea of red. It looked like they had tried to tear each other apart and almost succeeded before succumbing to their injuries._

_Rahzar was sprawled on his belly, the blade of Michelangelo's kusarigama buried in his skull. Michelangelo still clutched the chain in his right hand. Two of Rahzar's bone claws were embedded in the chest plates of his plastron, and his left arm had been mangled beyond recognition in those massive, wolfish jaws.~_

**ooo**

The warmth receded from Leonardo's body along with his anger, making him shiver. His thirst for revenge drained into bitterness and sorrow, the veil of numbness that protected his body and mind shifting aside. The pain of the gashes to his arm and thigh, the thud of bruised ribs, the full body ache of hard battle, the sharp jabs in his shell and in his head; all of it paled in comparison to the piercing agony in his heart at his failure. If he had only been able to defeat Shredder more swiftly, his family might be alive right now. He hadn't been good enough. He sunk to his knees slowly and gazed at his reflection in the serene pool next to the aisle. He was covered in blood and dirt and bruises, his eyes haunted and vacant. Yet he lived.

"Why, Karai?"

She sheathed the knife in her boot and crossed her arms tightly across her chest. "I didn't know." Her reply was uttered like an apology.

**ooo**

_~Donatello coughed and hope sprung brightly into Leonardo's chest. _

"_Leo?" Donatello asked with glassy eyes._

"_Yes! Donnie, hang on, okay?" Leonardo said in a shaky voice, noting the blood pumping from a deep gash on the inside of his brother's thigh. He took Don's mask and tied it tightly above the cut, babbling continuous reassurances as he elevated his leg and put pressure on the wound to slow the bleeding._

"_I'll be right there," Donatello said wistfully._

_Leonardo's brow furrowed. "What?" But Don wasn't talking to him, he was looking at April. Leo hadn't even seen her. She was half buried in ruined, smoking Footbots, an arrow protruding skyward from her neck. Leo's heart stuttered in understanding. _

"_No, Don. Don't you dare," he wheezed, barely able to draw a breath as his fragile hope was crushed in his chest. Already the scrap of purple fabric was soaked through and Leonardo felt Don's pulse slow under his fingertips. "No, stay with me," he demanded._

_Donatello's brown eyes locked in a dead stare with April. Anger flared in his belly and he shook Don by the shoulders. "Don't you dare leave me like this!" he shouted, rage his only companion. _

_Shredder had won after all.~_

**ooo**

Leonardo squeezed his eyes shut as his fugue lifted and forced him to confront the truth, the prickle of tears threatening to burst a dam that would never be repaired. His mind replayed Raphael's furious battle cry as he had thrown himself at Tiger Claw to avenge Sensei and Casey. There had been a tone of finality in it that meant Raphael intended to fight to the death, and Leonardo had known that at the very least, he would find his brother gravely injured. He had never thought he would lose them all, had never anticipated existing in a world without any of them in it. Tears started to flow, dampening his mask before making a trail down his cheeks.

The memory of Michelangelo's torn body reared up, unbidden. Mikey, the one least suited to a life of solitude and death, forced to kill the first person that he had ever trusted as a friend. A sob ripped it's way up Leonardo's chest, leaving his throat constricted as it passed through his lips.

There was a rustle of fabric to his side as Karai took tentative steps towards him. "All of them?" she asked softly.

Leonardo nodded, unable to speak, hoping unconsciousness would claim him soon. His lungs demanded more oxygen than his heaving cries would allow. He thought of Donnie, how betrayed he'd felt as Don's life had slipped through his hands, as if he'd had a choice by the time Leo reached him. Had he found April? Were they together and happy now, somewhere beyond the reach of all this pain?

Karai silently rested a hand on Leo's shell as his body rocked with the force of his grief. No Master. No clan. No family. The last of his kind. No one would ever know that they had existed or what they had accomplished. No one would miss them.

Leonardo had never felt so tired, so bone-weary with despair and loss. He offered Karai the sticky hilt of his katana and she took it from him without pause. He kept his eyes shut as she shifted into position beside him. He was too weak now to do it himself and he knew she would understand.

"I never meant for it to end this way," Karai said sadly.

"I know."

"Brace yourself."

Leonardo planted his palms flat on the floor and calmed, keeping still for her and exposing as much of his neck as he could. He trusted Karai to make it clean and fast, to end his suffering and let him find peace at last. He gasped in surprise as pain lanced through his shell once, twice. He growled and whirled around to face her, too exhausted to get to his feet. His katana was tucked into her belt. Leo's head swam with confusion until she threw down two bloodied arrows that had been lodged in his carapace. They clattered loudly onto the floor into the silence between them.

"Don't you dare leave me here alone," Karai whispered fiercely.


End file.
